Jerome V. Gooden

Jerome Viard Gooden was born on September 8, 1935 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to Jerome K. Gooden and Harriet Gooden (née) Johnson. He passed peacefully on the morning of February 5, 2021.

Affectionately known as Jerry, Jerome had a very happy childhood living in a close-knit community with parents, and his brother Emerson. Jerome was especially close to his maternal grandmother, Margaret (Johnson) Myers, who lived nearby during his early life. Becoming a Catholic as a youth, Jerome attended Nativity Grade School, served as an altar boy, and graduated from North Catholic High School, where he participated in numerous sports and in the band. After graduation, Jerome served in the Air Force Reserves for four years. Upon his honorable discharge, he returned to Pittsburgh for work and college, but soon decided to pursue a career in law enforcement in Washington, DC.

Jerome joined the Washington Metropolitan Police Department in 1963. During his 28 years of service, Jerome helped to integrate the police force and served in several departments including the traffic division. Among the memorable events in which he served were the 1963 March on Washington and the funeral procession of President John F. Kennedy. While on special detail with the U.S. Capitol Police for several years, Jerome took great pride in protecting the Capitol grounds and the members of Congress.

Although having relatives already in the DC area made life easier for Jerome, he left his heart with Betty Aldine Brown back in Pittsburgh. After meeting in 1960 and maintaining a brief, long-distance courtship, they were married in 1964. From their union, they had three children, Margaret, Mary, and Martin (Marty). Jerome was an alumnus of American University and a devoted Catholic actively attending St. Francis de Sales Church in DC and St. Matthew's Church in Baltimore, Maryland. In 2016, Jerome and Betty moved to Baltimore, MD to live closer to their daughter Mary and her family and in March of 2020, the couple moved again to Dayton, Ohio. Throughout his life, Jerome was committed to his family, friends, faith and community. In his spare time, he loved fishing, bowling, talk radio, and reminiscing on his days in Pittsburgh. He was always quick to tell a story about his relatives, to share facts and trivia he had learned, and will be remembered for his jovial personality, his unique phrases, and boisterous laugh that everyone could hear.

After a brief hospitalization in late January, Jerome died peacefully in his sleep due to complications of pneumonia and COVID-19. He is preceded in death by his parents and brother, Emerson, and survived by his wife, Betty Gooden of Dayton, Ohio; his son Dr. Marty Gooden and his partner, Jessica Tupa, also of Dayton; his daughters, Margaret Gooden and Mary Sutherland, both of Maryland; his son-in-law, Dr. Arthur Sutherland; his grandchildren, Gabrielle and Ethan Sutherland; and extended family and friends across the nation and abroad.

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